A LOCAL woman has called for common sense to prevail after being forced to endure a 12-hour bus journey to Altnagelvin Hospital for what should have been a simple, local appointment at the South West Acute Hospital (SWAH).
Una O’Reilly, who was a key figure in the campaign to save maternity services at the Erne Hospital in the 1990s, has largely stepped back from frontline activism in recent years.
However, her recent experience with both the health system and the public transport network has compelled her to speak out once again.
At the start of May, Una fell at her home in Belcoo and broke her wrist. After being treated at the SWAH Emergency Department, she was told to expect a follow-up appointment at the fracture clinic.
Una O’Reilly is no stranger to fighting for local services, having been heavily involved in the successful community campaign to save maternity services at the Erne Hospital in the 1990s, along with her family and friends. Yet when that appointment came, it was for Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry – almost 70 miles away – not the SWAH.
Una, who doesn’t drive, immediately began phoning the appointments line for answers.
After some back and forth, she was told by staff at both Altnagelvin and SWAH that the change was due to the new IT system, Encompass, which has been rolled out across the Western Trust.
She questioned whether the Trust’s management had thought through the impact of Encompass on patients, stating, “Common sense is in really short supply – or is this the slippery slope to
removing the Fracture Clinic from SWAH altogether?”
On May 29, Una set off on her marathon bus trip at 7.45am.
Her journey involved four separate buses: From Belcoo to Enniskillen, then Enniskillen to Omagh, Omagh to Derry’s Foyle Street bus station, and finally a bus to Altnagelvin.
“I did have offers from friends and family to take the day off to drive me, but I refused,” she said.
“People shouldn’t have to drive past two good hospitals to get services we’re being starved of. Services are being chipped away at and soon will all be gone. The people of Fermanagh need to shout loudly because when a service is gone, it’s gone.”
Una’s frustration was compounded when her second bus of the day pulled up at the doors of SWAH, simply to pick up passengers.
“It was a sad sight,” she said.
At Altnagelvin, Una praised the helpful fracture clinic staff who took her in early so she could make the 4pm bus back to Omagh. But her journey home was no easier.
Thanks to afternoon traffic and roadworks, the bus from Derry didn’t reach Omagh in time for her Enniskillen connection.

To read full story see todays Fermanagh Herald.